Strategic Balance in the Indo-Pacific Region : Challenges and Prospects

Indo-Pacific Region is combination of Asia Pacific Region (APR) and Indian Ocean Region (IOR) connected by busy straits of Malacca, Sunda, Lombok and Makassar. The region encompasses almost half of the world population, a third of the top twenty economies, world GDP and exports. It is home to an enormously populous and diverse mix of ethnicities, cultures, political systems, religions and economies. As a confluence of two busy oceans, the region is the maritime highway of the world that combines emerging markets and resources of Asia and Africa with rest of the world.

The Indo Pacific Region is the canvas of global power shift. While the US seeks to maintain a status quo in the world order and international system, China, on the other hand, asserts for recognition as a major power and strives to carve out its own sphere of influence. Russia, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and the ASEAN countries have become important stakeholders in the balance of power in the Indo Pacific Region and pursue their core objectives through dynamic balancing of interests.

This book brings together varying perspectives on security challenges, mapping of economic potential and proposing architectures for collective security and economic integration in the region.

Strategic Balance in the Indo-Pacific Region : Challenges and Prospects

author details

Dr Raj Kumar Sharma holds doctorate from School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He is a Research Fellow at the United Service Institution of India, New Delhi. He has contributed to different projects on Indian security and foreign policy for the Ministry of Defence. He is a contributing writer for the Nikkei Asian Review (Japan) and has taught Political Science at the University of Delhi.

MH Rajesh is an alumnus of Indian Naval Academy and Defence Services Staff College. He has post graduate degree in Strategic Studies from Madras University. He is presently a Research Fellow at United Services Institution of India, focusing on China and Indian Ocean.

Introduction

Part I - Security Challenges and Prospects in the Indo-Pacific Region

Maritime Disputes in the East China Sea and its Implications for Regional Security by Dr Changsu Kim

Geopolitics of Maritime Disputes in South China Sea and its Implications for Regional Stability by Lt Col Ngo Thanh Tung

China’s Perspective on the Maritime Disputes in the Western Pacific by Sr. Col Mu Changlin (Retd)

Dynamics of Indo-Pak and Sino-India Border Disputes and its Implications on Stability of South Asia by Maj Gen RPS Bhadauria, VSM (Retd)

The Islamic State’s Influence in the Indo-Pacific Region by Ms Sumitha N. Kutty